Pike County vet reaches 40 years in the field

Matt Dutton, The Herald-Whig

Published
4:30 am CDT, Tuesday, September 12, 2017

Image 1of/1

Caption

Close

Image 1 of 1

Veterinarian Bill Johnson listens to Pam Ince's dog Bear's heartbeat with a stethoscope at the Pittsfield Veterinary Clinic. Johnson has been a veterinarian for 40 years in Pike County. Jake Shane | Quincy Herald-Whig (AP) less

Veterinarian Bill Johnson listens to Pam Ince's dog Bear's heartbeat with a stethoscope at the Pittsfield Veterinary Clinic. Johnson has been a veterinarian for 40 years in Pike County. Jake Shane | Quincy ... more

Pike County vet reaches 40 years in the field

1 / 1

Back to Gallery

GRIGGSVILLE (AP) — Pike County veterinarian Bill Johnson has treated animals out of the same office for 40 years and has no intentions of stopping as long as it is still fun.

Growing up on a cattle and hog farm in Missouri, Johnson knew his future would be rooted in agriculture, and he initially thought the path would be education. While attending the University of Missouri, he found an affinity for veterinary science, and immediately after graduating in 1977, Johnson took a job with the Griggsville/Pittsfield Veterinary Clinic. For almost half a century, the quiet, wood-paneled office just outside Griggsville where he had interned during his senior year has been a second home.

“It’s been really enjoyable. I don’t think I’d have been as happy doing anything else,” he said. “I like seeing the people, and I like working with the animals. It’s as simple as that. It’s very rewarding.”

When he started out, he estimated, 80 percent of the practice’s clientele were owners of large animals, primarily pigs.

“It’s changed immensely,” he said. “We do a lot of small animals now. There’s probably about as much livestock as there was, but it’s in less owners’ hands, so there’s less clients involved.”

Johnson attributes the altered course of the practice to the expansion of farming operations and the increasing difficulty of starting a new farm.

“When I came here, we didn’t go over 10 miles from this clinic. There were enough clients within a 10-mile radius of here to keep two of us busy all the time,” he said. “Most of the clients were family farmers. You knew the people, all of their pets and their kids.”

Recognizing that change is inevitable, he has expanded his sphere over the years, and now the farthest client Johnson travels to see is near Peoria.

“The relationship with farmers is personal. We work with those people pretty closely,” he said. “We’re part of their team. I’ve worked with some clients for 40 years, and some are the next generation.”

Although he has scaled back slightly through the years, Johnson would work between 60 and 90 hours a week in those earlier days.

“That was just the lifestyle,” he said. “It was pretty normal, just the way it was.”

The longevity of Johnson’s career is outpaced only by the longevity of his marriage to his wife Jane. The couple met in college, and when Johnson took the position in Griggsville, they began setting down roots. They have three children, all of whom followed their father’s passion for medicine. Their sons, Clayton and Henry, both became veterinarians. Clayton works for Carthage Veterinary Clinic, and Henry works in St. Peter, Minn. Their daughter, Victoria, is a doctor in Seattle.

“They were here a lot as kids,” he said. “I just wanted them to choose something they would enjoy. I hope they enjoy it as much as I do. I hope in 40 years, they can say it’s been fun.”